The Forties oilfield is the largest oilfield ever discovered in the North Sea. It was discovered in the 1960s and first produced in 1975 under ownership of BP. By the time they sold the field in 2003, their reservoir engineers estimated the STOIIP was 4.2 billion bbl. Apache Corp. who bought the field, immediately initiated an intensive exploration program in the mature area and found a further 800 million bbl, extending the field's life by at least 20 years, making the investment by Apache Corp. a very profitable one. BP still benefits, however, as they retained the Forties pipeline system, which Apache Corp. must use to export the oil to shore. There are five fixed platforms around the Manhattan sized field, Forties Alpha, Forties Bravo, Forties Charlie, Forties Delta and Forties Echo. A riser platform lies further to the East, Forties Unity, and remains owned by BP as a strategic asset for accessing the Forties pipeline system without being dependent on those older access point, Forties Charlie. The importance of the field has made it a status symbol in the North Sea. When BP sold it, some traditionalists likened it to selling of the family silver. Retaining the FPS however made it a smart commercial decision and BP profits from Apache Corp.'s exploration investments without needing to invest anything themselves.
